Those hoping for a Smart crossover/SUV to hit showrooms will be waiting for a while, as there are no near-term plans to expand beyond the city car market.
During the 2015 Automotive News Europe Congress, Smart CEO Annette Winkler said a crossover or SUV would not be joining the ForTwo and ForFour city cars anytime soon, Automotive News Europe reports, before adding such a vehicle could come in time.
Fans of the Smart Roadster will be disappointed, however, as Winkler dashed any hopes of a revival due to the roadster segment being too small to be profitable for a Smart-branded entry.
Regarding the ForFour, underpinned by the architecture found in the Renault Twingo, Winkler said the partnership between Smart and Renault created “enormous economies of scale” for the parties involved. She proclaimed the ForFour was the more premium of the two because of higher-quality interior components in the former.
Parent company Daimler AG says Smart is due for “significant” growth this year, thanks to help of new features such as the optional Twinamic six-speed dual-clutch transmission, replacing the oft-maligned automated manual which sacrificed smooth shifts for greater fuel economy.
Said Twinamic will likely appear in the U.S.- and China-bound ForTwo later this year, as well. Winkler explained her company wanted to wait to deliver the two-seater city car to those markets until the new transmission was available “since premium customers want the level of comfort offered by Twinamic.” The ForTwo will head east to China in August, then cross the Atlantic for U.S. deliveries starting this fall; the ForFour will not make the westbound trip.
[Photo credit: Smart]
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